Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Last night, my best friends and family threw me a surprise shower. I seriously had NO idea! I am shocked that they pulled this whole big thing together, especially the week of Thanksgiving.

I was just sitting at home (in my PJs of course) waiting on my BFF to arrive from out of town. Then, my sis-n-law and friends came in and told me to hurry and get dressed. (Well, seeing how I have about 2 outfits left that fit, it didn’t take me long to get ready).

We loaded up and they took me to a 3D ultrasound place where my aunt and hubby’s mom and sis met us as well. They all got to meet baby Evie! She looks like a little chunker already; I’m thinking she’s got my chubby cheeks for sure =)

Then, as if that wasn’t enough, we went to a restaurant where the rest of the amazing ladies in my life were waiting. The shower theme was “nesting” and my sis-n-law invited everyone to bring “meaningful” gifts. They definitely were!! I love every single thing I got! I really need to get a hope chest for Evie for some of the stuff.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving which, of course, reminds me of all the blessings in my life. While I am incredibly thankful for everything God has blessed me with, after last night I am focused today on how thankful I am for the ladies in my life.

Last night, I was looking around and thinking... I have all these incredible women close to me. I know that there is no way I would be able to be smiling and laughing through all of this without them.

What is so amazing about these girls is the fact that although they are all incredibly different, they all have a very common trait:

They are genuine.

They are themselves and although not perfect, they are beautiful, funny and full of love. They have all been through difficult times and they are all so strong! Some have helped raise me and others I have only met over the past few years, but they are all incredibly important to me. Many of them have seen me at my absolute worst, yet they never gave up on me.

I know that these women already love my daughter; they already accept her. They don’t have to give false words of comfort because they truly believe and hope for the best for her. They don’t shy away when things are difficult or uncomfortable. Their faith in God is so strong that I feel their prayers and I know that they truly believe it when they say Evie will be okay.

My mom is one of my best friends and that is one of the biggest reasons I started wanting a daughter. Not just for the frilly dresses and the barbie dolls, but for the bigger things; seeing her walk down the aisle with her daddy, helping her go through pregnancy and start a family of her own. My hope is that Evie will grow up and become a part of this special group. That she will get to know these amazing women and love them all as much as I do.

I am so thankful that during what might be the hardest time in my life, God has given me such a wonderful group of family and friends. I truly hope that I can be even half of the comfort and inspiration to them that they are to me.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

~My NOT me WEEK~

I did NOT almost cry when I looked through my old phone pictures and seen this pic of the twins as babies. They are NOT about to be 4 years old and this does NOT make me emotional.

We did NOT have the most talkative server EVER at IHOP where we ate at for lunch. She did NOT go into far too much detail about her methods of birth control, and my husband did NOT almost gag on his pancakes…

I did NOT completely ruin the one home-cooked meal I attempted this week. My zucchini was NOT mush, my lasagna did NOT have the consistency of soup, and I definitely did NOT totally char the brownies. I did NOT burn the fire out of my hand twice during this whole horrendous attempt, and my sweet, sweet husband did NOT have to choke it down and tell me how good it was...

I also did NOT go to a store to pick up a few items and as I checked out and gave the cashier my CVS card, she did NOT have to politely say, “ummm, sorry Mam’, but this is Walgreens.”

Monday, November 16, 2009

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

~My NOT Me Week~

I did NOT get aggravated at my OB appt. this morning when the doctor told me that my c-section wouldn’t be scheduled until the 28th of December. It also did NOT bother me that the doctor who will be performing the c-section isn't who I preferred, and the pediatric surgeon that we have met with will be out of town that whole week. Calm and Cool all the way =)

Then, I definitely did NOT burst into tears in the drive-thru of Chick-fil-a when an adorable little girl waved at me through the window. I was NOT listening to Selah’s “I Will Carry You” during this whole incident and the drive-thru worker definitely did NOT think I was a total freak-show.

My lovely son Nolan did NOT spend the entire weekend in the corner for being disobedient and he is NOT currently grounded from all video games for at least a week after sneaking into the bathroom to give his stuffed elephant a bath when he was supposed to be taking a nap. His Daddy did NOT almost completely lose it on him.

Of course, I would NEVER have to use an entire box of Magic Erasers to clean all the crayon and marker lines off our walls which definitely have NOT been there for about 6 months. Reese’s pieces would NEVER do anything like this.

I did NOT have to quarantine my boys this week so they would not infect the world with their germy germs. And of course, I did NOT wait at Wal-Mart for 2 hours to get FIVE prescriptions filled. This is NOT the twins on the floor after getting eye drop treatments for the pink eye that they both DIDN'T have. Nope, my kids are healthy as can be.

I am also NOT writing this blog post instead of taking my Astronomy quiz that is due by midnight. I will definitely NOT wait until 11 pm to start it =)

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Evie is almost 3 and ½ pounds! They also measured her arms and legs and she is not very far behind in growth. The amniotic fluid is still high, so I will be going for ultrasounds once a week unless it goes back down. I love getting to see Evie every week; she looks HUGE on the ultrasound!

I am definitely learning a new level of organization and so far have not mixed up any doctors appointments. We are going to Egleston on Thursday morning for another fetal echo of her heart and to meet the surgeon who would perform her heart surgery (if she needs it). Then, Thursday afternoon we have an appointment with a different pediatric surgeon who will fix the omphalecele.

Dr. Yeagley thinks we will probably try and wait until the 39th week to schedule the c-section. I’m pretty sure that is the week of Christmas. So we might be having flashbacks of December 2005 with the twins!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

This has been on my mind for weeks. Since all of this happened with Evie, I have been searching for answers about prayer.

How should I pray? Should I be praying for acceptance and guidance, regardless of the situation? Should I be praying constantly for healing? Should I be praying for discernment? All of the above?

I started asking God for guidance in my prayer life, and He has shown me so much.

The first verse that came to me is:

Romans 8:26-27:26In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; 27and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

I don’t have to worry so much about saying the “right” words. The Holy Spirit intercedes if we don’t have the exact words. God already knows the desires of our hearts.

Next, He has drawn me to the Garden of Gethsemene, where Jesus prays the night before his cruxifiction.

36 Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, "Sit here while I go over there and pray." 37And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed. 38Then He said to them, "My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me." 39And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." Matthew 26:36-40(NASB)

Jesus was distressed and He asked His Father to change his circumstances, but then He said, not as I will, but as You will. Jesus never gave up trusting the will of His Father. It is important not to become arrogant in prayer, believing we know better than God. His will is perfect.

Third, I have focused on praying for others. When I stop looking at myself and my problems, it is easy to see a bigger picture, and to realize everyone is going through or has went through a difficult situation. In all my worrying and wondering about what is going to happen and what I should be doing, I have forgotten that it is not all about me! Life does not revolve around me and my circumstances. God is so much bigger than that. His plan is so much more than I can comprehend.

Lastly and most importantly, I have learned to just stop and listen; to spend time with God without requests or expectation.

Thanking Him for His love and forgiveness.

“In reality, there is only one true prayer, only one substantial prayer: Christ Himself. There is only one voice that rises above the face of the earth: the voice of Christ. Perfect prayer does not consist of many words, but in the fervor of the desire which raises the heart to Jesus.”
Mother Teresa: No Greater Love

Monday, November 2, 2009

I always like reading these posts, so I thought I would try one out for myself...

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

My NOT ME Monday

I sooo did NOT let my boys dress up like video game characters and I did NOT make their totally awesome hats all by myself.

Of course, I do NOT have the worst sweet tooth ever, and I definitely have NOT eaten far more of my boy's candy than they have.

Reese is definitely NOT the cheesiest little picture taker ever...

…and he definitely does NOT get that from me.

I definitely do NOT have 3 totally different doctors appointments this week, and three more next week, and I am totally NOT tired of doctors appointments... all these extra appointments did NOT cause me to forget about my astronomy quiz and of course, I did NOT receive a big fat zero on it. (thankfully, my professor is dropping the lowest quiz grade)

I would NEVER take advantage of the fact that the boys were at Grandma and Grandpas and celebrate by taking a 2 hour nap in the middle of the day. It was NOT the best nap ever.

Oh, I definitely have NOT gained more weight than I am supposed too during this pregnancy, and no, I do NOT totally feel and look every bit of it! =)